Crime down in Roseville, but robberies see steep increase

Roseville city officials announced this week general crime patterns are at a 17-year low, though armed robberies and strong-arm robberies have essentially doubled over the previous year.

The bright spots in the city’s assessment for 2012 showed Roseville’s general property crime was at a 17-year low, while its violent crime was the second lowest rate in 17 years. According to statistics from the Roseville Police Department, reported rapes were down by 38 percent from 2011, while aggravated assaults were down by 7 percent and general thefts were down by 8 percent. The change in the murder rate was close to flat, with 2011 seeing one homicide and 2012 logging two cases.

While police and city officials had plenty to celebrate in the numbers, the crime category that includes armed robberies, strong-arm robberies and all forms of bank robberies nearly doubled, rising from 43 reports in 2011 to 84 in 2012 — a 95 percent increase. In a statement from the city, Police Chief Daniel Hahn noted that the robbery rates in 2011 were “unusually low,” registering some 51 percent below the robbery rate for 2010.

Hahn attributed the over-all reduction in crime not only to good police work, but to heightened awareness, community partnerships, neighborhood watch and new programs designed to combat metal theft.